


Principality of Love

by hllfire



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Blood and Injury, Charles Xavier is a Mess, Falling In Love, Fighting, Historical Inaccuracy, Knight Erik, M/M, Prince Charles - Freeform, Protective Erik Lehnsherr, Swordfighting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:21:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25176067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hllfire/pseuds/hllfire
Summary: Erik is a knight of the Westchester Kingdom, tasked to find the missing prince after his kidnapping. He couldn't have foreseen how difficult of a task that would end up being, or just how close to the prince he would grow while trying to do it.
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Comments: 65
Kudos: 101





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to this epic tale that was supposed to be just a one-shot at first and then I found myself with 9k words (and without finishing it). This was actually supposed to be posted on Cherik Week at the start of June but I ended up never finishing so I postponed it and it feels like a good time for me to post it now!
> 
> I've been wanting to write a Knight!Erik and Prince!Charles AU for the longest time and I FINALLY got around to writing something that I actually like with it. This fic was rewritten 5 times because I never liked it so this is the version that pleased me when I reached a certain number of words, I really hope you guys like this as well! And remember, this is just the beginning ;)
> 
> Enjoy ❤️ (Also, thank you to my friend that helped me name this because I had no idea how I would call it).

Erik was starting to lose hope, his horse already tired and he himself feeling the burden of two almost sleepless nights as he watched the twilight on the horizon and the sky getting darker and darker between the trees. Behind him, Alex Summers, his squire, was showing signs of exhaustion as well. The boy, only seventeen years old, had dark circles under his eyes and his head hung low, eyes watching the ground as they went, body clearly tired.

Erik hated making Alex strain himself so much. He was responsible for the boy's training but, in the three years that Alex had been Erik's squire, he grew fond of the kid and had tried his best to make it easier for him, even if Alex said he could take it. Unfortunately, this travel they had been doing for the past two days hadn't been easy, with Erik having to fight road bandits and other people who insisted on attacking them and Alex having to get into the fights as well to help Erik when needed. There was a small cut on Alex's cheek from a knife that was now covered by the crust of dried blood and his whole face was covered in dirt. Erik knew he wasn't much better of himself. The King's mission was draining them slowly, and there was no sign that they would complete it.

The King had called for Erik two days ago and given him a task that Erik knew would make his reputation get even bigger if he got it right, and would give Alex the warranty of his title as knight once he reached twenty one years old if he accompanied Erik through it. Apparently, the Prince had been kidnapped by thieves while he was on one of his morning walks, and the King feared for his son's well-being. Erik was sent to find the Prince and rescue him if possible, bringing the heir of the Westchester throne back to his home. All that Erik knew about the thieves that kidnapped the Prince was that they headed south, which meant that there were only two villages inside the kingdom that these thieves could've gone. It seemed like a simple enough task but, unfortunately, it wasn't.

Erik had gone to the villages, had searched left and right for the missing Prince, but couldn't seem to find a trace of him or of the group of thieves that kidnapped him. His only lead now was the words of an elderly woman on the second village, who gave him water and bread to keep both Erik and Alex fed enough to endure the travel through the woods after telling them that sometimes the thieves came from the forest. He didn't want to stop his search, mostly because taking too long could be fatal for the Prince, but he was almost giving up and going back to the village so he and Alex would be able to sleep, the Prince be damned.

He was about to tell Alex to turn back as the dark night settled, when he noticed something between the trees, a flicker of light that was clearly from a lamp, and suddenly his energy seemed to get back to his body. He made his horse go faster, knowing that it wouldn't be long until the poor animal passed out from exhaustion, and heard Alex doing the same as he followed the knight more into the forest.

Up ahead there was a large establishment that was built in the middle of the trees, music and voices coming from the inside. It seemed like a large tavern as well as an inn, and he was able to see a few people drinking and singing to the music playing inside. Erik hopped down of his horse, tying the leash to a tree and patting the horse's nose for a second. Alex did the same, looking at Erik expectantly for orders and the knight just shook his head once Alex pointed to his shield.

"No need. I already have my sword with me."

"What about the armour?"

"No, I don't think the people in there would react well to a knight in full armour. I'll stay in my tunic."

Alex nodded, slightly worried about his master's choices thanks to the amount of times they had been attacked on the past days, but not questioning him either, and soon they were walking inside. A few people looked at them curiously, probably due to their tired looks, but mostly they were unnoticed in the middle of the small crowd that filled the tavern. Erik's eyes watched the place curiously, noticing a few faces that he recognized from the _wanted_ posters that were scattered across the kingdom — thieves, murderers and traitors drinking and laughing between themselves —, and Erik wondered if he hadn't found the safe haven of these wanted men and women.

Alex got them a table, too tired to look around like Erik was doing and eagerly sitting down with his forehead on his hand. Erik couldn't help but to smile apologetically at the boy, making a silent promise that, if he didn't find the Prince there, they would at least rest so both of them could gather their strength. Before Erik could sit down, however, his eyes caught on someone at a table far from theirs, surrounded by people as they laughed and raised their glasses.

It was the eyes that made Erik stop in his tracks, deep blue and alive in a way that Erik couldn't explain, shining as if they were gemstones in the middle of that sea of people. The man's dark hair was tousled and flopped over his face as he smiled, red lips open in a bright grin full of amusement. There was no doubt that this was the Prince, dressed only in his dirty undershirt and trousers. Erik would recognize him anywhere ever since the first time Erik met him on the day he became a knight a few years ago, but he didn't understand why the Prince, who was kidnapped two days ago, was drinking and laughing amongst a group of what Erik could only assume were thieves.

"Stay here." was all that Erik said before leaving a confused Alex behind and walked through the tavern to meet the Prince.

When he was close to getting to the table, their eyes met, making Erik stop on his tracks as Charles showed signs of recognition with his face. Apparently he remembered Erik, but for some reason he seemed to get pale with the knight's presence there, making Erik even more confused with what was happening. The expression on the Prince's face changed immediately back to the bright smile from before, looking at the people on his table before getting up in a swift movement.

"I'm gonna get more of this." he said quickly, shaking his empty glass so everyone knew he was talking about his drink. Erik waited.

"Be careful, Charles. Last night we had to carry you to your room because you passed out." a few people laughed at that, glasses hitting the table loudly, and Erik frowned deeply as the Prince followed their laughter sincerely, as if he was having _fun._

"Oh, shut up! You kidnapped me, you deal with the consequences, Logan!"

The thieves laughed at the Prince's relaxed manner and the grin on his red lips as he started walking away, shooting a look at Erik before pointing carefully to the exit. Erik nodded, walking out into the night again and waiting for the Prince as he tried to make sense of what was happening there. It didn't take long for the Prince to cross the doors and meet his eyes again, expression now more serious than it was inside the tavern, but he now carried a full glass of ale in his hand.

"I assume my father sent you to look for me." he said, voice strong before taking a gulp of his ale. Erik nodded, wondering if he should say something before the Prince talked again. "There's no need for your presence here, Knight."

"What?" Erik blinked a few times, clearing his throat once he saw the Prince's eyebrows raising at the lack of etiquette in front of him. Either that, or in amusement at said lack of etiquette. "I'm sorry, your Highness, but I don't understand what you mean."

"What I _mean_ is that I am perfectly safe and you can go back to Westchester. I'll be on my way back to the castle in just a few days if everything goes right." Erik only frowned deeper at that, not even knowing what to say to the Prince's words, and he noticed the other man sigh.

"Weren't you kidnapped?" and then quickly added, "your Highness."

Charles snorted. "Indeed I was, but I managed to talk to my kidnappers instead of threatening their lives like they said most would do and now I think I'm about to make a deal with them and walk out free."

"A _deal?"_

"Yes, my friend, a deal. The group that kidnapped me are small road thieves, never killed anyone, they just need the money to live and can't find work anywhere." Charles explained, lifting one finger to make Erik wait as he took another few gulps of his drink. The knight watched the scene unfolding in front of him rather perplexed, not really knowing what to think as the Prince made a small pleased sound and dried his mouth with the back of his hand. "Unfortunately I had no money on me to give them when they took me and they were too scared for my safety to drop me somewhere now that they had came this far because I'm the bloody Prince or something. It was kind of sweet."

 _"Sweet."_ Erik repeated, seeing the Prince nod with a smile on his lips as if he was daydreaming about the sweetness of his own kidnapping.

"Yes, they were afraid someone would hurt me if they just dropped me anywhere with no means to go back, and didn't want to risk taking me back to Westchester and getting locked up." he sighed, as if any of the options were horrible. "I'm gonna try and make a deal with them for them to take me back as if they rescued me and get them the jobs they need, so everyone ends up happy."

"You can't be serious, your Highness-"

"Please just call me Charles here, they'll know you're one of the King's men if you keep using my title."

"Well, there's no need for that. Stay here and I'll get my squire and I'll take you home _myself."_

"No you won't." the Prince complained, stopping Erik from storming into the tavern again with an expression that was nothing but serious. "I'm going through with this plan of mine, I _won't_ go with you."

"Your Highness-"

"Charles." the Prince corrected.

 _"Charles."_ Erik's voice was now annoyed, and Charles raised his eyebrows again. "Your father, the King, gave me a clear task to locate you and get you home safely. I'm not going to disobey the King because you suddenly feel bad about these thieves."

"These _thieves_ have families, Knight. I've met them. They're trying to provide for them in any way they can because they can't find something that will give them the chance of doing something more honest. They haven't murdered anyone, they're road thieves, stealing from those who have too much." Charles' expression was suddenly full of contained anger, making Erik back down a bit, the Prince's blue eyes cutting cold as ice even if the first signs of the alcohol affecting him were showing. "They have children to feed and families to take care of. I'm not condoning their actions, Knight, but I'm willing to offer a chance of them to leave those actions behind."

"So you expect me to just sit around and watch you make a deal with them?"

"You don't have to sit around, I didn't want you here in the first place." Charles finished his words with another gulp of ale, making Erik almost slap the cup away from his hands at how nonchalant Charles was being.

The Prince was apparently a stubborn man, and Erik really didn't like that, but he couldn't lie that the mention of the thieves' families made him back away a little. If these thieves were truly what the Prince were saying they were, the way that Charles was handling things was very compassionate of him. Any other person would have ignored the reality of the people who had kidnapped them, but, for some reason, Charles didn't. He was willing to help them even after taking him away for two days now, even smiling and joking around with them, as if they were just friends in need. He knew deep down that he himself wouldn't do it, Erik was more of an _'attack first, questions later'_ kind of man, and he wondered if Charles was either a brave man with a big heart or just completely stupid. Erik would like to bet on both.

He looked at the Prince once again before sighing, shaking his head.

"I'm not leaving until you do." Charles groaned immediately at Erik's words. "I'm still here to take you home safely, _Charles,_ you wanting it or not, which means if they'll be the ones bringing you home, I'll be there as well."

"Fine, just be careful to not let people here know you're a knight for God's sake. I don't know if you noticed, but the clientele of the tavern is made by wanted criminals."

"It would help if you stopped calling me 'Knight', in the first place." Erik said, starting to move to enter the tavern again and find Alex as he realized that he had left the boy alone in there for too long. "My name is Erik."

"Good for you." was all the Prince said before heading back into the tavern as well and quickly walking towards the table with his- his kidnappers? His friends? Erik didn't know what to call them anymore.

He sat in front of Alex, who finally seemed to notice the Prince was there as he cheered happily with the other people of his table. The boy looked back at Erik with a clear question in his eyes and the knight only shook his head, making Alex look as confused as Erik was moments ago.

"It's a long story. I'll explain you later."

Alex, thankfully, didn't try to question it, even if his expression was still puzzled. They got drinks for themselves as Erik still looked over at the Prince from time to time, seeing Charles laughing happily everytime he did so, behaving like one of them even. Next to him, Alex coughed as he took the first sip of his ale.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are again with chapter 2 of this! This time we get to meet the group that kidnapped Charles and some more Charles being a bastard with Erik because that's the best thing in my opinion.
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy the chapter ❤️

After hours, Alex had slept on the table in the middle of all the noise, head rested against his arms and his snores being muffled by the voices and the music being playing at a corner of the tavern. Erik didn't sleep, moving earlier to a table closer to Charles' so he could hear the conversation going on, making Charles glare at him for a moment before deciding to ignore the knight. Erik's eyes kept glancing back at the Prince as Charles kept smiling and talking to the group of thieves as if they had known each other for their entire lives. Slowly they all started to leave, shaking Charles' hand and giving him easy smiles, until it was only Charles and another man who the Prince had called Logan before, talking calmly over their drinks.

Erik was still trying to hold back the urge to just grab Charles and drag him back to the King despite Charles' demand that he did no such thing. It was dangerous to leave Charles there, in that place filled with criminals, even if people there seemed to willingly ignore everyone around them, a silent pact of _'I won't mess with you if you don't mess with me'._ Erik was glad for his choice of not putting on his armour, staying in his tunic that didn't really give away his identity — thankfully, no one seemed to care about his sword as well. Either way, that was no place for a prince.

He considered again taking Charles with him, but stopped himself when a little girl entered the tavern, coming from the rooms upstairs where the inn was and grabbing his attention immediately. That tavern was no place for a prince _or_ little kids, and Erik suddenly was worried about her presence there, even if no one seemed to really care about the child making her way through the few people that still filled the place.

She had a tired expression, seemingly annoyed at the same time, as she stormed through the tavern like she owned the place, firm steps over the rough ground under her bare feet. Erik heard someone say that she shouldn't be there, but she didn't listen, making her way directly towards Charles and Logan. The Prince's eyes widened for a moment as he finally saw her there, looking like he wanted to take her away from that place, and Logan finally noticed her when she poked him on the shoulder, looking as shocked as Charles.

"Laura, I told you not to get down here at night." he said calmly, slightly annoyed but there was softness in his voice that Erik was able to catch, pulling the girl up to place her on his lap. The girl only looked sharply at him, silently accusing him of something and making Logan sigh.

 _Those thieves have families,_ Charles had said earlier that night, and he couldn't help but notice some kind of resemblance between the girl and Logan, both looking at each other with hard expressions as if they were trying to make the other surrender to their looks first. _His daughter,_ Erik assumed. She looked thin, more than a child should look, her small frame far too little, remembering Erik of himself back when he was a child and as small in frame as that girl, making the knight want to give her something to eat. Something inside of him told him that Logan thought the same thing, and suddenly he seemed to understand Charles' motivations to do what he was doing, to put himself in such risk, even if it was clear that his captors liked him now.

"Sorry, bub," Logan said, now looking directly at Charles, a small smile appearing in the girl's lips as she apparently won the staring contest. "I need to put this feisty one to sleep."

"It's alright, I'll go to my room soon." Charles smiled, charming and kind, which made Erik stare at the Prince for a moment more. It was a different look from what Erik had received the whole night. "But, please, be here in the morning. I need to talk to all of you tomorrow."

"I can see you're planning something." the other man got up, eyebrows raised and gently putting the girl on the ground again, who quickly walked around the table to give Charles a hug. "Should I be scared?"

Charles chuckled, taking the kid into a tight hug and placing a kiss to her temple as she smiled softly, clearly fond of the Prince. He looked up at Logan again, same kind smile still on his lips.

"No need. I promise. Now go, she looks tired."

They shared a goodbye and soon Logan was walking up with the girl holding his hand the whole way. Once he was truly gone, Erik saw Charles sigh and get up from the table with his drink before sitting down heavily on a free chair by Erik's and Alex's side and plopping his ale down, walking Alex up immediately. There was a slight cloud over Charles' eyes, making Erik know that the alcohol had gotten to him, but he looked lucid enough to hold a conversation.

"You didn't leave." it wasn't a question, and honestly, Charles seemed very annoyed, soft expression going away to give space to a hard one — reserved only for Erik apparently.

"I told you I'll leave when you do. With you." the knight shrugged with a deadpan expression, making Charles narrow his eyes.

"Your Highness." Alex said, still half asleep and bowing his head respectfully, making Charles smile amusedly now at the teenager.

"Don't call me that here, young man." the Prince warned, taking a sip of his drink and making Alex even more confused. "It's better not to announce my title to everyone inside this tavern."

"When in the morning will you talk to your kidnappers?" Erik asked before Alex could say something else, leaning forwards on the table.

"It's none of your business." Charles answered quickly, stubbornness still dripping from his voice, making Erik want to groan. 

"I'm _asking_ because I want to help, Charles." there was a hint of surprise in the Prince's eyes as Erik said that, even if the knight sounded very annoyed at the moment. "If I'm going back with you and those people I need to know the full plan so I can tell the King what you want to be told."

"And _why_ would you want to help?"

"Because maybe they deserve this second chance. Maybe you're right in giving it to them."

Charles seemed to doubt Erik's words for a moment, eyes narrowing as he studied the knight, making sure Erik was not lying or making fun of him. Erik only stared back, a bored expression appearing on his face. After a while the Prince seemed to be convinced, taking a deep breath before relaxing a little more in his seat, crossing his legs under the table.

"Breakfast. And how can I be sure you aren't lying to me and will lock them once we reach the castle, _Sir?"_ Charles mocked his title once he said it, some venom behind his words that made Erik roll his eyes. "For all I know, your duty is with the Crown, and my friends there aren't really the kingdom's favorites…" 

"My duty is with the Crown, which means _you,_ doesn't it?"

"It means my father."

"And I'll be filling my duty by bringing you safely to him. My orders are to bring you, not to lock anyone-"

Erik stopped talking when he noticed some people eyeing them from across the tavern with suspicious looks. The knight's expression turned into a hard one, one that he knew was able to make anyone step back if he really wanted to, right before turning to Charles again. The Prince now looked at him with curiosity.

"We should talk somewhere more private. I think that there's too many ears around us for this conversation to happen."

Charles seemed to understand immediately, drinking the rest of his drink and placing his now empty cup loudly on the table once more. 

"Get him a room, he looks like he's going to pass out at any minute." he moved his head in Alex's direction, making the squire almost complain loudly about Charles' words, but Erik stopped him by raising his hand. "We can talk in my room. It's private enough."

* * *

Erik almost smiled once Alex finally was laid on a bed, falling asleep almost instantly still in his clothes after loudly saying that he wasn't tired. He left the boy alone, closing the door and walking calmly towards the door where Charles said was his room, knocking a few times before hearing the Prince's voice allowing him in. 

Much like the room where Alex was asleep, it was small, only having a bed — Alex's had two, since Erik would be sleeping there as well — and a washing basin in one of the corners, the lantern inside giving it enough light for Erik to see the Prince. The only advantage of the room was that it was the last one in the corridor, more hidden from the rest of the inn, which meant that it was better for them to talk without getting into trouble. 

Next to the bed, Charles stood with his arms crossed around his chest, still only in his dirty undershirt and trousers, blue eyes staring at Erik with suspicion still painting them, as if he thought Erik would grab him and forcefully get him back to his father. Erik only stood by the door, fixing his posture a little bit and putting his hands behind his back, a sign of respect to Charles that made the Prince raise his eyebrows.

"I gave you permission for you to treat me like anyone else and you're still following conduct?"

"You're still the Prince, I'm still a knight." Erik said, shrugging minimally, and Charles waved his hand and _tsked_ with his mouth slightly, brushing the subject off, movements slightly less gracious than normal as the alcohol took its toll on him before he crossed his arms again.

"I need you to promise me you won't turn on me or the others, Erik." Charles finally spoke then, using Erik's name and making the knight frown slightly at how his voice sounded like a plea. "These people aren't bad, they just need a chance to change."

"I already told you, your Highness, that I will help if it means I get to escort you safely home as well." 

"So I have your word?"

"You do."

Charles seemed to relax completely then, arms uncrossing and falling to his sides as he exhaled loudly, closing his eyes for a second. Erik didn't move, keeping his stance as respectful as possible now that they were alone. Charles was still the Prince and Erik was still a knight, he still owed Charles respect, as much as he had been acting like Charles was just a commoner for most of the night.

"Good. It'll at least be useful to have your sword with us. They only have knives and, other than Logan and Remy, they're not very good with them. I was able to disarm Ororo quite easily when we first met. _Sure,_ she punched me, but I still had the knife."

"She _punched_ you." Erik repeated, eyebrows raising at Charles' words and seeing the Prince shrug as he started pacing left and right, eyes on the hard ground under him.

"She's _very_ strong. Knocked the air right out of me when she punched my stomach"

"Sounds lovely." Erik joked, noticing Charles nod absently, a small smile in his lips. He was still under the influence of alcohol after all.

"She is." the Prince finally looked back at him, the smile not leaving his lips. "I'm glad you'll help. Makes things easier. We can talk about everything at breakfast when everyone's here. They'll need to know who you are, by the way."

"I imagined they would. You'll be safe here? In this room, I mean."

"Yes, it's perfectly safe here."

"Then I'll take my leave. If you need anything-"

"Don't worry about me, Knight. I'll be fine. Go rest. You're looking almost as awful as your squire. If not worse. _Shoo_ now." Charles gestured for him to leave as if he was talking to a pet.

Erik rolled his eyes before he could hold himself back, seeing the Prince smirk at that and chuckle, in a way that stopped Erik on his tracks. Maybe he had drank more than he should've that night, or it was his lack of sleep making his mind wander to places it shouldn't, because something about the way Charles' red lips curved made him suddenly wonder if they were as soft as they looked. 

He left the room with a respectful bow, closing the door behind him and staring at the wood for a moment before going back through the corridor to find the room he had gotten for himself, trying to get rid of Charles' smirk from his mind.

* * *

Erik woke up in the morning with a groan, Alex's voice calling him and pulling him out of his slumber. When he was able to open his eyes, still feeling the heavy weight of his tiredness asking him to go back to sleep, a few sunrays were shining inside the room, the trees outside shaking slightly with the wind and making a rustling sound that was muffled by the walls.

"I think the Prince is already down at the tavern." Alex said, making Erik finally wake enough to push himself up and search for his tunic.

 _Right, the Prince,_ Erik thought to himself as he pulled the tunic down and ran a hand through his hair as he tried to push back the loud begging of his mind for him to lay down again. He hadn't slept nearly as much as he needed, but it would have to do. As he stood to his feet to get to the basin at the corner, reveling at the fact that the water was cold enough as he splashed it onto his face, he tried to remember what he needed to do. Talk to the Prince's kidnapers — or _friends_ now, Erik reminded himself —, make sure that the Prince would be safe and deliver him to the King after traveling back to the castle. Seemed simple enough.

He walked out of the room after picking his sword from the side of his bed and putting it back around his waist, climbing down the small set of stairs that separated the tavern from thr inn and finding Charles already at a table, now lit up by the sunlight and with fewer people, almost cozy in the morning. The Prince noticed his presence after a moment, blue eyes turning analytical as he seemed to look at Erik for any signs that he would betray his words from the night before, seemingly not finding any as his face softened considerably and a small smile appeared on his lips, almost pleased. 

The group that was around him turned their faces to look at Erik as well, eyes judging the knight harshly as he approached, as if Erik was a threat.

He had seen the group last night, but didn't stop to pay attention to them, too focused on Charles. Two women and two men, one of them being Logan, that sat by his daughter's side as she ate her breakfast and pretended to not listen to the conversation around her. Erik could very well see that she was listening to everything.

"There he is." Charles said, still smiling as he was sat in the middle of the thieves and looking like royalty even with his dirty clothes. "The mighty knight."

"Good morning to you too, your Highness." Erik answered grumpily, taking the last chair available at the table and sitting down heavily as everyone still gave him dirty looks. He was the outlaw there. "I suppose you already introduced me."

"Sir Erik Lehnsherr," one of the men spoke, his words slightly accented with what Erik supposed was a french accent. The man's eyes seemed to have some kind of smart gleam to them as the curve of his lips raised slightly, apparently amused. "I heard about you. _The brave knight,_ am I right?"

"Brave or not, we don't know if he'll keep his word." one of the women talked, her voice almost a growl as her gaze pierced Erik. She looked young, probably the youngest of the bunch, and Erik couldn't help but notice her white hair that was tied behind her head and the way her dark eyes were hard on him. The youngest, but clearly not the weakest.

"I'll trust him to honor his word, Ororo." Charles' voice made Erik look back at him, focusing on the Prince's blue eyes as they stared back at the knight with some kind of warning for Erik not to break his trust. "Besides, having him by our side will be beneficial if we encounter any problems on our way back."

"And with me _and_ Charles you can take the King's Road, the fastest way back, without any questions." Erik quickly added, making them look at him again. "With the Prince missing, if you were to travel through the King's Road with only Charles, it would be suspicious. If I'm there, the knight assigned to bring him back, you have more chances of getting to the castle without the King's soldiers arresting all of you."

"He has a point." the other woman said, crossing her arms and leaning back against her chair. She had a softer face than Ororo but there were danger in her eyes, warning Erik not to do something stupid, and curiously part of her hair was white like Ororo's, even if she was far from old. "And he doesn't seem like he wants to betray us. I think we can trust him."

* * *

They started their travel in the afternoon after Logan left Laura with someone back in the nearby village and after the story that would be told to the King was decided: The four thieves — although that word wouldn't be used in front of the King — had found Charles after his kidnappers dropped him on the road, tending to the Prince until Erik found them, hiding somewhere safe in one of the villages. It was a simple lie that could work since none of them were known wanted criminals, just road thieves that managed to keep their faces hidden whenever they needed to steal to provide for themselves.

The group only had two other horses, which made the traveling slower, but they would be able to reach their destiny in time. Rogue — or Anna, but no one seemed to call the girl by her name there, even her husband resorting for nicknames for her —, Logan, Ororo and Alex were on top of the horses. Alex and Ororo shared one, both because they were both small and light enough to ride together and because of Erik's insistence after seeing the tired look in Alex's eyes when he offered his horse to the girl. Remy was walking alongside Anna in a calm manner, and Erik couldn't help but notice that sometimes he would place a hand on her calf as if to keep reminding both the girl and himself that they were there. The act seemed almost intimate enough to make Erik look away.

Charles was in Erik's horse as the knight went afoot, body still tired but holding on as he went, holding to the horse's leash to keep it going slowly behind everyone else where he could keep an eye on the whole group. As much as Erik knew that it was on their best interest that they kept their word of taking Charles back pacifically, he still had to make sure that that would be the case. Part of the reason why Erik had made Charles ride his horse was because, if something happened, Erik could just climb it and take the Prince away. As much as he wanted to help those people, he couldn't allow himself to let his guard down.

"When you became a knight a few years ago I thought you were an asshole." Charles' voice said out of nowhere, making Erik look up at him with one of his eyebrows raised. Charles wasn't looking back at him, face strangely calm as he kept his hands on the saddle, body moving slightly with every movement of the horse. "You looked so serious, more than the other knights I've seen, and I thought to myself: _that guy is probably an ass._ I'm glad I was proven wrong."

"Is that why you were so hostile with me last night?" Charles huffed out of his nose, a small smile appearing at the corners of his lips. 

"I thought you wouldn't listen to me and just do what you wanted to fulfill your duty like the other knights would. That's why I was so harsh. But you listened and you are helping now. Thank you for that."

"As long as you are delivered safely back to your father, it's no problem."

They didn't talk much after that small interaction, Erik deciding to stay silent as everyone else around him talked — including Alex, who seemed to be growing fond of the the group as well. He was tired, exhausted really, and each step that he took seemed to make his legs shake slightly even if he didn't let it show. Talking wouldn't help him in any way, so he just closed his mouth and tried not to count the steps he took as he walked through the King's road with the Prince by his side.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, this chapter really shouldn't have been this long but I got carried away at the end and, oh well, what can I do! 
> 
> Second of all, finally put a rating on this as Mature and updated the tags because of the ending of this chapter where, again, I got carried away. I have no idea if the violence depicted here is a "mature" thing but I put it to make sure people know that there's some violence and blood in this (it is middle ages after all). Also, next chapter might not be the last depending on how much I write for it BUT it could be.
> 
> AND, last but not least, my friend made [this](https://things4your.tumblr.com/post/624127144284569601/presente-para-meu-amigo-azul-te-amo-seu-boiola) awesome edit for me as a birthday gift for this story and I need you all to see it because it's incredible and I love it.
> 
> Without further ado, hope you guys like this chapter ❤️

When the night came and they made a makeshift camp to stay out of the road for the night — too risky to keep going with only the moonlight to light the path — Erik offered himself to stay up and keep guard. No one seemed to be against it, and soon there were only Erik and Remy up, sitting side by side in silence as the others slept on the ground. Erik had to admit he was impressed at how easily Charles fell asleep nestled against the roots of a tree, covered only by a thin blanket that Rogue brought with her specifically for Charles. He imagined the Crown Prince would have some trouble getting used to the hard ground and the absence of fluffy pillows under his head. Clearly he was wrong.

By his side, Remy played with a silver dagger as his eyes looked at the trees. Erik had witnessed earlier what Charles meant by only Remy and Logan being able to handle a knife when the french man started throwing his daggers in different targets as a lazy practice. It was almost hypnotic to watch him do it, the carefree expression on his face only being betrayed by the proud smirk that showed up whenever he managed to sink the tip of the dagger in any target he chose, which happened pretty often, making Erik wonder how much he had trained before.

"How honorable of you to help a bunch of thieves, Sir." Remy said, eyes moving towards Erik for a moment before going back to the trees. He looked weirdly at ease there, even if his eyes sometimes darted over the sleeping people, mostly to his sleeping wife, with some kind of worry there. "Even if you still have your guard up around us."

Erik frowned slightly, turning to the man and seeing him smile as if he knew all of Erik's secrets.

"Oh, I've noticed your looks towards us from the moment we left the tavern, how you kept the Prince next to you at all times and how, even being tired as you are, you decided to offer to stay up to guard our camp." the frenchman explained quietly, trying not to wake anyone. "You don't fully trust us."

"Can you blame me?"

"No, not at all. If I'm honest, the Prince was reckless in trusting us so easily, even if I appreciate that he did." Remy threw his dagger at his feet, the sharp tip sinking into the soft patch of dirt right between them with a precision that Erik envied for a moment. It was possible that, if Erik were to try this, he would end up hurting his own feet in the process. "But you are playing it safe, and yet you're helping anyway, and I'm considering that hopefully you won't betray us once we reach Westchester. But I must say that you really don't have to worry about us. We just want to be able to live."

Erik took a good look at the man, seeing the expression on his face as he took the dagger back and started playing with it again, only visible thanks to the moonlight that crossed through the space between the trees. Remy was being serious, Erik was able to see that, and there was some kind of determination inside his eyes that made the knight trust him right then and there.  _ We just want to be able to live, _ he had said, and Erik believed him, because he knew what it was like to just want to be able to live. To have nothing and take the chance to have  _ something _ when it was given to you. 

He could only imagine Remy's struggles to take care of his wife without any kind of income, without lands to own or work on, or without merch that he could trade for food and other bare necessities. And then the Prince arrives — or he takes the Prince, more like it — and tells him there's a chance for him not to put his life at risk to provide for himself and his wife. It was a chance that he couldn't miss, one in a million, and Erik was sure that Remy would take it, even with the danger of having a knight that could easily end his hopes of a better life. A risk worth taking. There was certainty in Erik's heart that Ororo, who had no one to come back to and relied on those friends she made, and Logan, with a small daughter left behind for her safety, thought the same. They would do anything on their reach to get that new chance that was being offered to them.

"I'll do as I said I would. I won't betray anyone as long as Charles is safe."

Remy huffed out a laugh at that, playful eyes rising to stare at Erik for a moment before his focus went back to the trees, the smirk that Erik was now growing accustomed with after spending the entire day with the man never leaving his lips.

"So you keep saying." he nodded slightly to himself, voice almost teasing. "Keep at it and I might think you truly care about  _ Charles _ and not  _ the Prince.  _ Care about the person and not the mission."

Erik frowned at that, body tensing up slightly at the man's words but unable to respond to that. Charles  _ was _ Erik's mission, had been from the start, he wouldn't be there if the King didn't ask for him to bring his kidnapped son back, and he intended on accomplishing that through whatever means necessary, including by escorting the kidnappers back to the castle to paint them as saviours when they started the whole problem in the first place, because Charles had asked him to and because Erik couldn't help but to want to aid those people after seeing them. It was a simple solution, the means to an end, and yet Remy was almost making him feel guilty for doing that only for the sake of finishing his mission and not because of Charles himself.

_ Who are you to judge, _ Erik thought bitterly, looking away from the frenchman as his expression turned sour.  _ You kidnapped the Prince in the first place, there was no caring for him there, only a goal. _

Remy seemed to notice Erik's mood change, smirking and shaking his head before patting his shoulder three times, as if they were good friends, making Erik glare at him from the sudden touch while he was still bitter.

"Go rest, Knight. You look awful right now and I don't think you'd be of much use sleeping on the road. I'll wake Logan up soon so he can take your place."

"Everyone keeps telling me how bad I look since last night apparently."

"Don't you appreciate sincerity? Because if that's the case I could say that you look like a greek statue carved in marble, beauty in its best form, shining with the light of God himself behind you and with the grace of the heroes of old on your side." the frenchman almost recited all of those words, raising slightly from his seat as he did that and throwing his hand in the air as if all he was saying was a kind of poem, making Erik look at him with narrowed eyes. Remy sat back down again like before, a trickster's smile on his lips. "Otherwise, if you  _ do _ want me to be sincere, all I have to say is that you  _ are _ looking like shit."

Erik groaned. Remy smiled wider.

"Go rest." he insisted again.

Erik wanted to protest, to tell the man that he would stay up, stubborn as he was, but the mere mention of sleep seemed to make Erik's body beg for it. He knew he needed it, there was only so much that his body could take without falling apart, and it was with that in mind that he got up from where he was sitting down and walked away, leaving Remy alone and sitting against the same tree that Charles slept, unconsciously still trying to stay close to the Prince — _ to your mission, _ his brain said, making him even more bitter about it when he shouldn't.

He moved around a bit trying to get comfortable so he could close his eyes and enjoy the rest of the night, only succeeding to make enough noise to wake Charles up, who jumped ever so slightly as he saw another body next to him, a soft  _ "fuck" _ leaving his lips before he calmed himself down.

"Sorry." Erik said as he finally sat down in a somewhat comfortable position. "Didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's alright, you just startled me." Charles' voice was hoarse and quiet, filled with the drowsiness of sleep. "Weren't you on lookout duty?"

"I was dismissed." he couldn't help but purse his lips as his eyes went to Remy at the other side of the camp, the frenchman's back turned to Erik as he watched the trees.

"Are you cold?" Charles asked, making the knight look down, an eyebrow raised. "The night isn't exactly warm today."

"I'm alright." then added, "Are you still cold?"

"A little bit, I'm not gonna lie." there was an embarrassed smile in Charles' lips as he looked up at Erik, blue eyes still visible under the moonlight, just darker. He curled his body a little more, keeping the thin sheet glued to his body in search for warmth. "I'm in my undershirt and the blanket is thin, and I've always been too cold. My sister always complained about my cold hands."

"You can come closer to me." Erik said without thinking, seeing Charles' eyes widen just a bit. "The warmth of my body could help."

There was a moment of silence between them after that, where Erik thought he had said something stupid and that  _ of course _ the Prince wouldn't want to get closer to Erik, until he felt the man scooting closer and hesitantly pressing his body against one of Erik's legs, forehead touching the side of his thigh as the knuckles of his hands pressed near Erik's knee, with the blanket and Erik's trousers as a barrier. The knight grew stiff for a moment with the contact, not even looking down at Charles for a while before he tentatively put one of his hands on Charles' back, near his shoulder blades, feeling the Prince relax with that touch. He didn't know why he had rested his hand there, the touch feeling too intimate to be shared with the Crown Prince, but he kept it when he saw that Charles wasn't pulling away.

It didn't take long for Erik to sleep after that, fatigue taking over every inch of his body as his eyes closed, feeling Charles' calm and warm breathing against his leg as the Prince slept peacefully.

* * *

Erik woke up with the first rays of sunlight hitting his face, disturbing his slumber, and with the feeling of something pressed over his leg. He opened his eyes slowly, blinking once, twice, three times, before finally being able to keep them open and look down to understand that the weight over his thigh was Charles' head, using Erik's leg as a pillow as he slept calmly with parted lips and hair falling all over his face. Not only that, but Charles seemed to have clinged himself to Erik's leg completely, an arm loosely over it as his own leg intertwined with Erik's as Erik's hand was resting on the back of Charles' neck almost protectively, probably ending there as the Prince and himself moved at night.

It took the knight a few moments to truly allow his mind to understand the information and send the signal to make his cheeks blush red and burn as if they were catching fire. And it took him only a few more seconds to finally hear the noises of people moving, eyes looking up to find both Remy and Logan staring at the scene with expressions that conveyed nothing but amusement, making Erik clench his jaw and blush even more at being seen with the Prince like that, finally taking his hand away from Charles' neck in a abrupt movement as if it would help his case.

"We didn't want to wake you two up." Alex's voice caught Erik's attention, making the knight snap his head to look at his squire as the boy helped everyone to pack everything onto the horses again. "You seemed to need the extra sleep and the Prince… Well… I'm sure that if we woke him up, you'd feel the movement for the way he's-"

"I see." Erik said abruptly, swallowing the lump that formed in his throat as he saw Remy snorting before turning his back to them. Logan kept staring, smug smile on his face as if he was having fun with all of this. "Thank you, Summers."

Alex only nodded before his attention was elsewhere, and Erik decided that it was time for the sleeping Prince to wake up. He nudged Charles' shoulder slightly, trying not to be too rough, but the Prince didn't even flinch at the movement. Erik tried again, no response. Apparently the Prince was a heavy sleeper in the mornings, who only woke up after being roughly shoved by the shoulder and having his name almost screamed at him — which Erik kindly did. Charles' eyes snapped open and he looked confused for a moment, brain still trying to figure out that it was awake and not dreaming anymore, until he noticed where he was, how he was and who he was with, snapping his body away from Erik quickly as his cheeks got as red as Erik's had been moments ago, only not getting up all at once because he was trapped by his own blanket.

"I'm sorry." he said mechanically, eyes not even looking at Erik as a few chuckles were heard around them. "I didn't mean- I was- I'm truly sorry."

"It's fine." Erik replied, desperate to calm the Prince down as he felt the spot where Charles' head was resting before still warm, the ghost of his touch lingering more than Erik would like it to.

* * *

Erik's feet hurt from walking the entire morning and for a good portion of the afternoon, the soles of his feet burning inside the confines of his boots as he tried to conceal his discomfort, sometimes limping thanks to the pain but quickly trying to keep a normal pace once someone started to look his way with curious eyes. He wasn't one for showing his weaknesses, not even around those people who he knew — or at least that he hoped — wouldn't take advantage of them, so he just clenched his jaw and kept going, each step starting to become almost too painful to ignore.

His hand was still holding tightly to the reins of his own horse where Charles was mounted, walking side by side with the horse. The Prince was talking excitedly to the rest of the group about various stuff, but mostly the castle's library and the many books he had read and all the knowledge he got from them, and Erik couldn't help but listen as the Prince talked about them — it was a great source of distraction from his sore feet anyway.

"There are works from all over the known world there." Charles said, his eyes shining as he talked about his precious books. "It's fenomenal what you can find. I have been learning a lot about medicine from some that came from the East."

"Sounds interesting." Rogue said, a smile on her lips of amusement as she watched the Prince babble on about his books.

"It's  _ very _ interesting."

Erik himself always wanted to go into the castle's library, to see the King's collection, but he never had the chance or the invitation to do so. Erik was lucky enough to have learned how to read and write as a young man, had always been fond of reading, but his collection, which was composed of half a dozen books that he managed to gather through his trips — none of them about medicine from the East —, was lacking. He wondered if Charles would let him go to the King's library if he asked, if he would grant him that favor, and decided that he should bring the topic later again. Wouldn't hurt trying.

Erik's thoughts were cut short, however, when his party got ambushed, the conversation going around them making them lower their guards enough for the attack to happen.

It was a group of five people who attacked, and even if the thieves weren't in a bigger number than their party, they had the element of surprise. Two of them came in horses, bumping into Erik's and Remy's horses, and Erik almost didn't have time to react as his horse fell to the side and almost fell completely on top of him. He jumped, his body suddenly going into a defensive state as the screams of the thieves as they attacked filled his ears, noticing another scream in the middle of them. Erik managed to see that the scream came from Charles, who was now on the ground with his leg right under the fallen horse as the animal tried to get up again. Next to them, Alex screamed for Erik as he raised a sword to defend himself from one of the mounted thieves.

For a moment, he wondered what to do first — help Charles or attack —, adrenaline starting to kick in as the situation escalated around him and making him almost able to forget his sore feet, but a pained groan from the Prince gave him his choice. For precaution, Erik drew his sword from its sheath and got down to help Charles get up as the horse finally managed to get up from the ground, seeing the Prince cry out in pain as he tried to step with the hurt leg, face turning paler than normal with the pain. Erik's first thought was that his leg was broken, but soon he could see that the main problem was a giant cut on the side of it that was bleeding more than it should. On the place where Charles had fallen there was a rock, sharp and coated in fresh blood, where the Prince's leg was pressed against it and with the weight of a horse on top.

"Charles-"

_ "Watch out!" _

Charles' warning was enough to make Erik raise his sword in time as a man tried to attack them, and Erik could see that the sword carried by the thief was one that a common road thief shouldn't have. It was a knight's sword, and a quick glance at each other as the blades of their swords were still touching gave Erik the answer to his question: the man attacking Erik's group was a knight just like Erik, and that knight probably had that same realization. Erik moved his sword quickly, a movement made only to make the other man back away as Erik got to his feet and let go of Charles, hearing the Prince grunt with the pain but stay still on the ground behind Erik as he took his stance. 

He had heard about the knights like this one before, ones whose titles meant nothing and stealing and killing were the only means for them to live. But he also knew that most of them did that just for fun, for the fear and chaos they could cause, for the  _ adventure _ that was violence. Erik didn't have time to think about which of them those men were, not when the other knight's eyes looked at Charles and widened with recognition, greed filling his irises and the grip on his sword getting tighter, ready to fight Erik for the prize that was the Crown Prince. Erik only widened his stance, eyes turning colder with determination to not let that man overpower him.

At the first attack from the other man Erik noticed quickly his own disadvantages. His feet still hurt inside his boots, the movements of him trying to keep his feet planted on the ground to keep his position or to move minimally to dodge an attack reminding him of the pain, not even the adrenaline of the fight helping him with that. Added to that there was the fact that he had strained his body with all the walking that whole day, while the other knight didn't seem to be suffering from that at all. Then, there was the fact that Erik couldn't move much if he wanted to keep Charles behind him, where he would be safer from the attackers who were now fighting the others from Erik's group. To Erik's luck, he still had some advantages.

The other knight was good, he was able to counter each and every one of Erik's moves with his own sword easily. But Erik's training with Shaw when he was younger ended up being worth it now that he was facing another knight, who had been trained just like him. Erik had been trained to fight by Sebastian Shaw, had learned with one of the best fighters and knights of Westchester — that is, before Erik took the title and made Shaw furious for losing the King's admiration to his pupil —, and although Erik still hated the man who took him in when he was a child, he couldn't help but being thankful at that exact moment for all that he learned.

The other knight attacked using his sword as just a weapon, while Erik had learned to use it as an extension of himself, an elongated arm. There was a difference between Erik's and the other knight's movements; each parry, cut and thrust from them looked different even if they were similar movements. Erik's were more balanced, even with the pain on his feet, which was an advantage for him. Besides, while the other knight's goal was to gain something from the fight, Erik's was to protect. That motivation alone was in Erik's advantage.

As he fought, looking closely at the man's movements for a breach for him to be able to turn the fight in his favor, he could hear the sounds of the others fighting around him, a quick glance to his party giving him the notion that everyone seemed to be doing alright and making a small amount of pride fill him as he noticed Alex attacking one of the other knights with precision like Erik had taught him, noticing that Alex was keeping the knight's attention to himself in order for Ororo to jump him with a knife that the girl carried with her that whole trip. Erik didn't see how it ended, but he knew that once Ororo had jumped on the man's back with that knife and with Alex and his sword right there, it meant that it was one less person for them to worry about. Unfortunately, Erik couldn't look for much longer than a few moments since there was someone trying to kill him at that exact moment.

Erik grunted as the man managed to hit a cut on his arm — thankfully not too deep, only enough for it to burn thanks to the dirt and sweat on Erik's body —, stepping back for a moment as the other knight's attacks became more aggressive. But, with the aggressiveness, came the recklessness, and it wasn't long before Erik noticed the breach in the man's movements and took advantage of it.

It only took a quick movement, a quick dance of feet and blades and a few well placed cuts and soon Erik's foot was meeting the man's knee with strength that he saved for that movement alone. Erik heard the loud noise from the man's knee — if Erik's attack didn't dislocate it, it surely had done something — as well as the pained scream as he dropped to the ground, sword slipping from his hand, and Erik didn't think about it before turning his own sword in his hand and lowering it with a shout into the man's back, between the ribs, metal blade sinking into skin, muscle and bone as if it was nothing. The other knight looked up at Erik with wide eyes before they turned glassy and all life left them.

Erik took a few deep breaths as he pulled his sword back, getting to his feet and looking around, ready to face whoever tried to attack him next, but soon he felt himself relax as he saw that it wasn't necessary. Next to him, Erik saw another one of the knights with a dagger thrown into his throat when he tried to take the bag from Remy's horse as Remy kneeled on the ground with Rogue by his side. She was laying on the ground but still conscious for what Erik could see. Logan was somewhere near them, getting to his feet seemingly in one piece as another knight laid dead by his feet, as the third one — the one that had been attacked by Alex and Ororo earlier — laid dead just as well.

The remaining knights — only two of them now, the ones who were mounted — started to retreat, screaming at each other and cursing Erik's party to hell as they went, and suddenly all the noise turned into just the sounds of Alex trying to calm Remy's horse as the animal trashed around. Erik's own horse seemed distressed by his fall, but wasn't trying to run away, so he just ran a hand through the horse's neck before going straight to Charles.

The Prince was curled on the ground, face paler than normal as he tried to get his breathing right, fingers pressed against the skin over his cut as if he could pluck the pain out of there by doing that. Erik tried to see the leg, pulling it closer and receiving a scream and a kick on the stomach from Charles' healthy leg that knocked the air right of his lungs. He didn't even know where the Prince got that strength from.

"For fucks sake, Charles, let me see your leg!" Erik's voice was slightly out of air as he said it, trying again to take Charles' leg to examine the cut, which was enough time for Alex to get to them carrying a bag that Erik knew had gauze and alcohol in it. 

Charles didn't kick him again, jaw clenched tightly as he allowed Erik to see the cut. It didn't look too deep, but the fabric of Charles' trousers was now sticking to it as the blood got dry, stopping Erik from truly seeing the damage. Next to them Remy took his dagger from the man's throat and told Logan to watch over Rogue, who seemed to be getting better as he got to Charles as well.

"Cut the fabric." the frenchman suggested, offering the dagger to Erik after cleaning it on his own clothes, which Erik accepted without much of a fight.

He grabbed the fabric, hearing Charles groan in an almost inhuman way at the lack of delicacy in Erik's ministrations, but soon the sound of the fabric tearing up was heard and Charles' leg was visible.

Thankfully, the cut really wasn't that deep, although it would probably take a while to heal and his walking would be affected thanks to it. Erik pursed his lips knowing what would come next — his own memories of bad wounds being sterilized making him shiver slightly —, not even trying to explain it to Charles as he took the bag from Alex and took the alcohol from it, opening it quicker than Charles would have time to process what it was and throwing the liquid over the wound. To say that Charles cursed his whole bloodline and some more was sugarcoating it, the Prince's voice straining from the pain and his whole body stiffening. At least now the cut was clean.

It was quick work to put the gauze fabric over it, tight enough to stop the bleeding, but it was harder to put Charles on top of the horse again. He ended up almost laying atop of the horse, no saddle under him, only the fabrics that would go under it, to allow Charles to do so, as his face was still pale and he had a hard time to keep his eyes open, the pain probably taking its toll on him.

"Did they take anything from you?" Remy asked as Erik gave him his dagger back. Erik looked at the bags on his horse and the ones on Alex's.

"No. You?"

"No. They managed to snatch one from Logan's horse but it was almost empty, nothing too important thankfully." Erik nodded, jaw clenched as the annoyance of being attacked once again on that mission settled in, seeing Alex have an expression that conveyed the same. "We should make camp early today considering the situation. Get on your horse with Charles."

"I can walk." as if it was their cue, Erik's feet burned again like never before, exhaustion taking over his body slowly. Remy rolled his eyes at that.

"Get on the horse, Knight. It's better if you're there to catch him if he falls from it. He doesn't look like he can keep his balance right now." Charles mumbled a protest at that, which both Remy and Erik ignored quickly. "And you have been walking all day. Don't be fucking stubborn."

Erik wanted to ignore Remy's suggestions — which sounded like orders in his ears now — but he knew that the frenchman was right, as much as he hated to admit it. After making sure everyone was fine, specially Rogue who Erik had found out had hit her head on the ground when the horse she and Remy were on fell like Erik's, they kept going to cover some ground before stopping again. Charles was safe on top of the horse, body now resting against Erik's as the knight helped him to move enough to sit sideways, with his head resting on Erik's shoulder as he tried his best to stay awake. Erik's hand held Charles' body tightly against his, keeping him from falling, as the other hand held the reins.

There were no conversations now as they went through the King's road, a somber feeling over their heads from the unwanted fight.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I said last chapter, this one could end up being split in two due to the length of it, and it did happen! The next chapter will be the last one now :-) (and there's no chance of more, the story really ends on the next chapter, it's already longer than I expected it to be ahahdhsj).
> 
> Really hope you guys enjoy this one ❤️

The sun was still in the sky, slowly setting on the horizon, when they decided to stop for the day. They had found a small clearing close to the road, next to a river that ran calmly, clear water reflecting the light of the setting sun. Charles was still pale in his arms, body sometimes tensing with the pain that crossed his body as the horse moved along the path of the King's Road and bandages red with his blood. Even so, Erik could see the displeased look on the Prince's face when they said they would be stopping for him, as if he didn't like being a push back, but everyone ignored it. It was that or Charles would probably pass out in Erik's arms before the night came, and that wasn't an option.

Erik got down the horse first, seeing Charles tighten his lips as he looked down at his leg before he allowed Erik to help him down.

"Let me test my leg." he said when Erik put him on the ground.

"I don't think that's-"

"Just let me."

Erik didn't like the idea, specially considering how the cut looked on Charles' leg before, but he knew that the Prince was too stubborn to hear him. Instead of trying to complain, Erik allowed him to stand on his own, even if his arms still held Charles' body lightly, just to make sure. Like Erik thought would happen, Charles' entire body tensed up with the pain as he tried to take the first step, his mouth opening in a silent scream as he almost fell to the ground. Erik held him again, taking the weight from Charles' hurt leg and picking him up in his arms when it was clear that Charles' strength had left him with the pain.

He walked with the Prince towards a nearby tree, Logan following him closely and helping him to put Charles down on the ground without hurting his leg more. All the time, Charles looked at his leg as if he wanted to reprimand it for not working properly.

“You are pale and lost blood.” Remy said when he saw the look in Charles' face. “Eat and we’ll change your bandages later so you can rest.”

Thankfully, Charles did eat, slowly recovering some strength as he finally properly rested his leg, face recovering the little bit of color it normally had. Erik sighed in relief at that, taking his eyes off of Charles so he himself could eat properly.

"How's your arm?" Rogue asked by his side after a while when she finished eating. Erik looked up at her, seeing a kind smile on her face. Very different from her husband, he'd say.

"It's alright. The cut wasn't deep. Stopped burning a while ago." he answered sincerely, looking at his own arm for a second and seeing the cut on his sleeve and what would soon be a scar under the fabric. Rogue's smile widen a little bit at that. "And your head?"

"Oh, I'm fine. I'm tougher than I look."

"I wouldn't doubt that."

"Do you… Do you think Charles will be okay?" she asked then, voice quiet and smile disappearing as she glanced at the Prince for a moment. They weren't close to Charles for him to hear the conversation between them shifting, but Remy was, looking at his wife for a moment before looking away again to finish his food. Erik knew he was listening, probably also waiting for the knight's answer. "I didn't see the cut but he didn't look his best on our way here. And there's a lot of blood on his bandages."

"He'll be fine. I've taken care of wounds like that on myself before, I can take care of his." Erik nodded, reassuring himself with his own words. "Once he rests I'll take a look again."

"The last time I treated a wound was Remy's." Rogue had a smile again, seemingly getting more relaxed with Erik's answer about Charles. "Happened years ago. He had an accident with one of his daggers and his hand was bleeding out."

"I'm sure Erik doesn't want to listen about that, _cherie."_ Remy finally said something, turning to both of them and raising his eyebrows at his wife.

"Oh no, he does. Remy was almost crying-"

"I wasn't."

"He was. And I helped him bandage it with a piece of cloth I had with me. Big baby, that one. Kept complaining." behind Rogue, Remy grimaced, making Erik smile. She was doing it to make him upset, it was clear in the way she talked and the way her eyes shone whenever she managed to do it. It was almost sweet, specially considering Remy's apparent nature of doing the same to other people. "Asked me to marry him when I finished."

"And I suppose you said yes?" Erik smiled a little bit at that, seeing Rogue chuckle and shake her head.

"Heavens, no. It took a few more tries for me to say yes."

"She couldn't resist my charm after a while."

Remy moved forward then, hugging Rogue and making the woman laugh. They seemed genuinely happy with one another, and Erik couldn't help but to smile at that. When he averted his eyes, he noticed the Prince was smiling at the couple as well before his blue eyes turned to Erik, gazes meeting for a moment before Charles smiled again, at him this time.

* * *

"Take off your pants, Charles."

"Oh, I'm definitely _not doing that_ with Anna Marie and Ororo around me." Charles rebuked, full of defiance as he looked at Erik with a look that screamed _'how dare you say that to me when I'm the Prince?'._

"We're not close to you!" Ororo screamed from where she was sitting with the rest of the group, quickly adding, "And I only answered because you're screaming!"

Erik rolled his eyes as he saw Charles blush and look even more like he wouldn't take his pants off, which would be a problem since Erik wanted to wash Charles' leg in the river to take a closer look at the wound again. Considering Charles didn't have any other change of clothing, not wetting the only pants he had — which were already ripped at his calf by Erik when he made the bandages earlier — was a good idea. Even so, Charles didn't seem to be eager to let his lower regions out in the world for the two women in their party to see.

With that in mind, and knowing that he had to clean Charles' wound to take a proper look at it, Erik started to untie his briefs, Charles' eyes quickly widening at the action as he opened and closed his mouth multiple times before Erik was lowering them to the ground, modesty only hidden by the long undershirt that he wore. Away from them, he noticed Remy covering Rogue's eyes, even if the woman had started to laugh.

"What are you _doing?!"_ Charles' voice was almost a growl, but Erik didn't answer, stepping into the River and sinking to his waist in it, the ends of his shirt getting wet on the water.

"Take off your pants, Charles." was all that Erik replied after a while.

Charles was blushing deeply, whole face red and eyes widened comically as he moved them through Erik's body in the water. The knight was able to see how the Prince avoided looking to the parts underwater at all costs, and couldn't help grinning at that, getting a surge of playfulness at the Prince's apparent embarrassment of partial nakedness.

After a few seconds and a few looks towards the rest of the group, probably making sure that they weren't watching, Charles started taking off his trousers, muttering curses under his breath that Erik knew were directed at him.

Charles couldn't get up to properly take his trousers off thanks to his leg, which meant he had to lay down on the ground to do it, putting his legs up on the air and pushing the pants down them to get them out. Erik regretted his position — directly in front of Charles, lower than him since he was inside of the river — when he was flashed with the vision of Charles' backside and his soft member, completely on display as he fought his trousers. The knight quickly looked away, feeling his cheeks burning and trying to focus on the cold water on his skin until Charles sat up and fixed his undershirt over his parts again, seeming extremely annoyed by the fact that he now was pantless in the middle of the woods and not realizing what had just happened.

"Now what?" his voice was full of annoyance and embarrassment as he looked at Erik.

The knight took a deep breath to get himself back together, walking back to the riverside and beckoning Charles to sit at the edge. Charles moved carefully, lowering his legs to the water and letting a soft sound of protest leave his mouth as the cold water touched the broken skin of his leg, some of the dry blood already starting to come off as the water ran calmly, dragging the blood with it. Erik took Charles' leg carefully, still inside the river, and started to clean around the cut as Charles tried his best not to complain, thighs tensing up and relaxing the entire time with Erik's touches. Erik almost got distracted by them, skin looking soft even as the muscles contracted under it. 

"We'll have to talk about your lack of decency." Charles said after a while, trying to break the silence around them, and Erik smiled a little, hands still working on Charles' calf. 

"I'm barely naked. No one saw anything of mine, same with you." Erik purposefully hid the fact that it wasn't true, the memory of the pale skin of Charles' arse coming back to his mind. He cleared his throat, trying to will himself into thinking of something else. "It's better like this. You need to clean yourself anyway. It will help the healing if there isn't dirt on the cut."

"You seem to know a lot about it."

"I'm hardly an expert, but I've seen enough infected wounds to know I don't want to get one, so I take care of myself. That gives me at least a little knowledge of the matter."

Erik's eyes moved to Charles' then, seeing the Prince staring back at him with curious eyes. He looked weary, but the lighting of the end of the day made Erik remember the old fae stories, how they were said to be beautiful creatures. He felt that if he saw Charles there, at the edge of the river in the middle of the woods in other circumstances, he would be certain he was one of the fae folk, ready to try and tempt Erik. 

"Then I'm guessing I should be glad that you're here?" there was a hint of playfulness in Charles' voice as he said that, lips curling up into a small tired smile. 

"Weren't you before?"

"Like I said, I thought you were an asshole before. You surely were an asshole when you tried to look at my leg earlier."

"You were pale and bleeding and I needed to check the wound. Besides, you kicked me in the stomach."

"And I'd do it again! It fucking hurt!"

Erik chuckled at that, seeing Charles smile at his reaction. "Is there a _'but'_ to your thoughts of me being an asshole, your highness?"

"You're less of an asshole than I thought, yes. More caring than you let show- _ouch._ Careful, you're pressing too hard… I just compliment you on being caring, don't make me regret it."

"Pardon me, my Prince." Erik's voice was teasing, and Charles chuckled at that, the noise seeming to fill Erik's ears like a song.

"I'll think about it."

A comfortable silence fell between them until Erik was able to clean everything properly, stepping back a little to raise Charles' leg out of the water so he could check it. It seemed well enough, it wasn't swollen and the skin around it looked normal, no redness or signs that it was infected at all. There was a small coat of dry blood over the cut itself that Erik tried his best not to disturb, although it was now wet with the water and would fall at any disturbance, which made Erik's movements even more careful around it. After checking another time to make sure his observations were right, he sighed in relief, helping Charles to take his legs out of the water as the Prince looked at him expectantly for a verdict.

"It's not infected so far, and you should just let it rest. I won't cover it for a while, it needs to breathe."

"Can I put my pants back on?"

"Only when I bandage it. No pants for now."

"I'm starting to think you only wanted me to take off my pants, Erik." Erik grinned at that, seeing Charles blush immediately.

"You do have lovely thighs, your highness, but I really wouldn't go through all that trouble just to see them." the comment made Charles turn even redder, a small incredulous sound leaving his mouth as Erik smiled amusedly at the Prince's reaction. "There's easier ways to get someone to take their pants off for me and that don't involve cleaning wounds."

"Oh, because you're so charming, aren't you?"

"I don't know, am I?"

The look in Charles' eyes was enough to make Erik give him a big grin full of teeth, feeling like that was enough payback for the trouble that Charles had been back in the tavern when he tried to get Erik to go away because he didn't need saving. It felt good to see the Prince look at him without managing to find words as the redness spread down his neck and he looked like he could scream at any moment at Erik's petulance.

"You know what?" Charles finally answered, voice slightly higher than it normally was. "You _are_ an asshole, Erik."

"At your service, your highness."

* * *

Later, as Erik bandaged Charles' leg again, the knight couldn't help but notice how dirty Charles' clothes were. The undershirt he had on had stopped being white a while ago, a coat of dirt and a few bloodstains staining it. Logan had cleaned Charles' pants on the river after Erik finished inspecting the Prince's leg, the piece of clothing drying slowly over a nearby branch, one leg bigger than the other thanks to the fact that Erik had torn it earlier. At least his pants were clean now, but his shirt was a problem. It couldn't be comfortable to be in them.

Once the wound was covered and Charles sighed in relief when he stopped touching the cut, Erik got up from the ground and walked away, leaving a frowning Charles behind. The knight went to his horse, checking his bags for the one where he knew he had a clean undershirt stored and taking it, walking back towards Charles with it in hands, offering it to the Prince once he was close.

"Take your shirt off and put this one on. It'll be more comfortable if you have a clean one."

"I don't have trousers on! I'll be naked!" Charles complained, making Erik purse his lips at him.

"Just change your clothes, Charles."

Charles considered complaining again but quickly gave up as he saw the look on Erik's eyes, only huffing and looking at the clean shirt for a moment before a blush crept into his cheeks. "Could you at least look away?"

Erik huffed out a laugh before nodding, moving to sit behind Charles, both stopping himself from looking at the Prince naked and stopping the others from looking at Charles. He felt as Charles took off his shirt, the fabric of the dirty one brushing against Erik as he pulled it up his body, throwing the piece of clothing away and starting to put Erik's shirt on. Once he was done, Erik turned his head to look at him, seeing Charles doing the same, a small smile painting the Prince's lips, shirt now white and clean over his form. 

"Thank you, Erik." and the sound of his voice was so sincere that Erik almost blushed at it. Thankfully, he managed to hold it back.

"You're welcome."

* * *

At night, Erik was once again with Remy as they took the first shift after settling to rest. Everything was calm, everyone asleep around them and the river running softly in the background, the low noise of the water and the rustling of the leaves above them being the only noises coming from the woods. The frenchman was trying to teach Erik how to throw his dagger as quietly as possible as to not disturb the comfortable silence, drawing small circles on the ground for a target that Erik managed to miss for just a few inches. He wasn't as bad as he thought, but Remy's aim was much sharper than Erik's. 

After a few moments of trying and failing — only succeeding twice —, Remy's eyes moved to look at the sleeping people of their group and stopped for a moment before grinning, making Erik frown.

"I think you should go rest now, knight." he said, his grin only growing. "The Prince seems to be having some trouble sleeping. Maybe he'll be able to do so if you're there."

Erik's eyes darted over to Charles and saw the man turning in his place as if he was very uncomfortable laying there on the ground next to a tree like the night before. He had been tossing and turning for a while now, Erik had noticed that, probably because of his aching leg, but apparently Remy wanted to insinuate that Charles wasn't sleeping because Erik wasn't there like he had been the night before. Erik flushed despite himself at that — he had joked with Charles about worse earlier when both of them had their pants off by the side of the river, _dammit!_ It made no sense for him to blush _now_ —, lips turning into a thin line as he thanked the darkness for hiding his flushed cheeks.

"He has a hurt leg. It's not like my presence would change that." Erik tried to argue, taking Remy's dagger from where it was thrown before and cleaning the blade with the sleeve of his shirt. Meanwhile, Charles turned again where he was laying.

"You surely seemed to make him very comfortable last night. Maybe he needs it again tonight. Even more tonight, I'd say! With the cut and everything."

Erik didn't answer, turning to the circle the frenchman had made on the dirt and throwing the dagger at it again, missing miserably and making him growl. By his side, the other man watched him with curious eyes until his grin died down a bit to a smile.

"There's no judgement here, _mon amie."_ Remy's voice had lost its teasing now, almost soft as he talked. "I may be teasing but I'm serious. He clearly feels comfortable around you now and probably wants that comfort at this moment."

"He feels comfortable around you as well." Erik groaned, stubborn, not wanting to give in even if part of him wanted to go there and sit by Charles' side again. "You should go there then."

"He likes me, but I don't think he would let me clean his hurt leg while he has no pants on. Or lay on my lap to sleep like he did with you last night for that matter."

The way Remy said it so matter-of-factly almost made Erik groan again, suddenly annoyed by the french's smirk at him, coming back at full force with the knight's reactions. Erik was starting to wonder if keeping conversation with him was worth it at all. Remy chuckled slightly, taking his dagger from the ground and patting him on the shoulder once he was back like he had done the night before.

"Go, Erik." was all he said.

Erik thought about refusing, about sitting down and ignoring the way that Charles was still moving around at his spot as if he was too agitated to sleep, but he ended up only sighing and calmly walking over to the Prince without looking back, knowing that all he would find would be Remy grinning at him.

He sat down by Charles' side once he reached the Prince, seeing his eyes stare at Erik as Erik ignored him, not being able to look at Charles at the moment but _feeling_ his eyes on him. He didn't say anything, only looked at the trees across from him as he waited for Charles to do something. When he felt Charles' head resting hesitantly over his thigh, Erik let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, just feeling as the Prince slowly made himself comfortable next to Erik.

"I still think you're an asshole." Charles muttered quietly, making Erik smile. "But you're warm and softer than the ground."

"Sleep, Charles."

There was silence again as Charles started to relax, only stirring a few times still as he tried to find a good position for his hurt leg that wouldn't bother him in his sleep, and Erik only let him. 

He didn't know why, but, after a few moments, Erik moved to lay down, letting his body slide on the ground under him and resting his head over his arm as he stared up, seeing the tree leaves and the stars painting the dark sky. Charles didn't move for a moment, only watching Erik carefully without receiving a look back, clearly surprised at Erik's actions. But, soon enough, Erik felt the Prince's hand resting lightly on his chest as Charles moved closer. His head rested on Erik's shoulder, some locks of hair brushing against Erik's cheek softly, and soon the Prince was tangling himself to Erik, hurt leg now over Erik's leg, throwing his blanket around the knight's body as well, even if only Charles' body heat seemed enough to warm him that night. Erik's free arm wrapped loosely around the Prince's body, hearing Charles sigh at that, feeling as Charles' body relaxed little by little until he was deep asleep next to Erik.

The knight stared at the stars again for a moment more before closing his eyes, feeling comfortable like he'd never been and dozing off slowly with the feeling of Charles' chest rising and falling calmly next to him and Charles' hand pressed against his chest, his own arm keeping Charles there with him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELP, TOOK MONTHS FOR ME TO COME BACK WITH THE LAST CHAPTER BUT I DID IT! It's currently 2:40am for me and I just finished writing and editing it (I'm sorry for any mistakes but it's hard to edit at 2am lmao) and now I'm posting it to feel better because I will finally have it finished :D
> 
> This was a fun au to write, especially because I like stuff relating to middle ages and I have a soft spot for royalty aus for some reason (plus knight Erik). This was supposed to be a short one-shot that got a life of it's own and turned into 5 chapters, and I'm very happy with how it turned out. To everyone that read this and left a comment, thank you. It made me even more eager to write it (even if I _did_ take two months to update this again lmao).
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy this last chapter. Now I'll work on my other thousand WIPs that I'm neglecting hehe ❤️

To his surprise, Erik woke up before everyone else was awake, only Logan seemingly up as he watched the trees around them. It was a silent morning, the leaves rustling quietly in the morning breeze and the first rays of sun hitting both him and the Prince, who was still lying against him and sleeping peacefully. He didn't know why, but he took a moment to look at Charles there, brow furrowing as he took in every detail of the other man.

Charles' hand was still over his chest, fingers curling slightly as if he was in the middle of grabbing something, and his face was still laid over Erik's shoulder. His hair was a mess of dark locks that fell over his face and over Erik's shoulder — a few strands even touching Erik's skin — but the knight could still see the soft skin of Charles' face between the mess of hair, a few freckles jumping out on the pale skin, red lips parted as soft huffs of air came out through it, warm over Erik's skin, his undershirt being the only barrier between them. Charles' shirt was pulled to the side, probably due to his movements while asleep, a little patch of skin of his shoulder showing thanks to the big piece of clothing, and Erik saw that the freckles really didn't stop on his face. Without really thinking about it, Erik's hand moved to touch the dark dots on the ivory skin, tracing them mindlessly and waking up Charles by accident.

The Prince stirred for a moment, yawning and taking one of his hands to rub his eyes before looking up, looking at Erik, and freezing on the spot. They stared at each other, a few birds singing in the distance as the morning came but neither of them dared to talk. Erik stared into Charles' eyes, taking in the blue of them while they were lightened by the morning sun, and he could see Charles doing the same to him. They didn't move, they didn't talk, they just stared, until Charles' eyes lowered for a fraction of a second to stare at Erik's lips, and Erik did the same. Suddenly, Erik was the only one not moving as Charles got his face closer to his, their lips finally pressing against each other's and a sigh leaving Erik's body with the contact.

It was strange at first, as if it was something forbidden, but soon Erik couldn't help but think that he couldn't let go of that kiss, that he needed it like he needed air or water, and his hand finally raised to bury his fingers on the mess of locks that was Charles' hair. He pressed a bit harder against the Prince's lips, hearing a whimper coming from Charles before he tried to fully climb Erik's body. He was soon reminded of his wound, whimpering at the pain, and Erik moved him carefully to pull him over his body without hurting Charles, wanting to feel the press of Charles against him just as much as the Prince himself.

Charles placed his hands on Erik's neck after that, the kiss continuing, deepening after a few moments. Erik heard the whine that left Charles' throat as their tongues met, as if he was more than pleased with that contact, and suddenly Erik's free hand was pulling Charles closer by the waist, pressing their bodies together as close as he could.

When they finally parted the kiss, Charles' lips seemed redder than before, his pupils slightly wider as he looked down at Erik with a mixture of surprise and want reflected on them, and Erik knew that he didn't look much different. 

"Good morning." Charles said, voice quiet in the silence of the early morning.

"Good morning…" Erik replied.

"Good morning indeed." said a third voice.

Both Charles and Erik snapped their heads to the side, seeing Remy standing next to a waking Rogue, face looking like he had just woken up and caught both of them kissing. Erik didn't know if he felt mortified at being caught by Remy of all people or if he wanted to fight Remy because of the smirk on his lips.

Charles moved quickly to not be over Erik's body anymore, clearing his throat and starting to make himself presentable as his face turned a bright shade of red. Erik's eyes stayed on Remy, who mouthed a silent  _ 'good job' _ at him before turning to help his wife.

Erik definitely wanted to fight him.

* * *

It was the last day of traveling to reach the castle and to finally bring Charles home, which meant that both Erik and Remy — who were the ones going by foot most of the time during their travel — got to ride the horses like they did the afternoon before since the animals could take the weight for the time that it would take for them to get to the city gates. 

Remy was with Rogue on one horse, the woman sitting behind him and hugging him by the waist as they talked excitedly to each other, smiles on both of their faces from the promise of a new life just a few hours away now. By their side, Alex and Ororo still shared a horse and were seemingly best friends now. Erik could hear the excited talks between them and Logan about Alex's training and Ororo's self-taught tricks. She couldn't really fight with a knife or a sword like the others yet, but she was strong and good enough to beat someone in a fist fight for what Erik had seen from her and Alex fighting together against the knights they encountered on the road.

Meanwhile, Erik and Charles shared Erik's horse again, Erik holding the reins and Charles sitting in front of him, their bodies glued against each other's thanks to the small space they had on the saddle to share and to make sure Charles was comfortable and wouldn't fall, his hurt leg not offering him much help to stay on the horse as it went. It was somewhat comfortable having Charles this close, his body trapped against his and between Erik's arms as he kept his hands on the horse's reins. At some point, he lowered his hands to rest on Charles' thighs, arms tired of being up for so long, and the Prince didn't complain about the act, his hands brushing against Erik's slightly in an approving manner, as if the contact was more than welcome.

"So," Erik said after a while of comfortable silence, seeing Charles turn his face to look at him. "am I charming?"

Charles huffed, head turning forward again quickly and making Erik smile. The Prince looked a lot better that morning, face now less pale than it was before and his leg not hurting as much, even if it wasn't healed yet. Erik had checked the wound before they left, applying new bandages to it and confirming once again that it wasn't infected, happy to see that it was healing well. Charles had watched him carefully the whole time, face flushing a few times as Erik knew he was remembering their kiss.

They were behind everyone else, not because Erik didn't trust the others anymore, but because Erik felt like they would talk about that kiss they shared that morning at any minute, and he would rather do that without Remy's knowing looks.

"It was a mindless act. I haven't had anyone in a while and you were close. End of story."

"You don't strike me as one who would just kiss anyone, your highness. And besides," Erik rested his hands on Charles' thighs again, hearing the Prince sigh. "you seem a lot more comfortable with me touching you like that."

"You kissed back."

Erik frowned at that, looking at the back of Charles' head for a second before going back to looking forward, trying to understand why Charles' words sounded strange. There was something there, it wasn't annoyance, it sounded almost like dread, but Erik didn't know of what.

"I did." he answered simply, hoping that Charles would say something more. No more words came from the Prince for a while.

"And why did you do it, then?"

Erik took a moment to answer, trying to find his words. Weirdly enough, the answer didn't take long to come to him.

"Because you are stubborn as a mule. And as an asshole I appreciate that." Erik felt Charles huff displeased in front of him, smiling at the Prince. "And also because you look beautiful under the morning light, and I admire how you risked everything to help those people."

Charles kept quiet at that, and Erik watched his body tense and relax a few times as they went, as if he didn't know what to do with Erik's words. And they were honest words, Erik did think that about Charles after taking a moment to think of it. He was attracted not only by the Prince's appearance, but even his stubbornness in helping the very same people who kidnapped him because he saw good in them. Maybe it was because Erik wasn't used to it, not from where he came from, that selfless act of kindness to people who technically didn't deserve it. It was something that Erik didn't expect from the Crown Prince.

"I do still think you were reckless in trusting them so easily, but at least they proved themselves worthy of that trust." Erik said after a while of silence where Charles seemed to be thinking about something.

"I couldn't just leave them there after knowing their stories, could I?" Charles' voice was low, as if he was still inside his own mind.

"The thing is that you could've. You could've left with me when I arrived. You could be leading them into a death trap right now. But you aren't, you're helping them."

Charles answered only with a small  _ mhm, _ making Erik understand that the conversation was over. He frowned at the Prince, wondering if he had said something wrong, but not daring to ask. After a long moment where nothing was said, Charles turned his head to look at Erik, almost resting it on Erik's shoulder thanks to his position.

"And the fact that I'm royalty has nothing to do with it?"

"It almost offends me that you would think that."

"I just… You're a knight. Your kind is always looking for ways to rise above your ranks. What better way to do it than courting the Prince?"

"You think that little of me? I'm not actually that much of an ass, Charles…"

Charles pursed his lips at that, a glint of guilt crossing his eyes as Erik looked down at him, eyes hardened with Charles' assumptions.

"I'm sorry, but I had to play it safe. If I fell for someone who was only after my power I don't know how I'd feel."

Erik blinked a few times as they looked at each other, lips parting slightly in surprise at Charles' words as he saw the Prince blush slightly, eyes moving away from Erik. Before he could turn away again, Erik decided to speak.

"I don't want your power. If I kissed you, it was because I wanted  _ you." _

He waited as Charles took his words in, seeing those blue eyes fill with doubt and hope at the same time. After a few seconds, a smile appeared in Charles' lips, small and tentative, and his hand moved to the back of Erik's head, pulling him closer for a soft kiss. Erik kissed back in earnest, reveling in the softness of Charles' mouth against his until they parted the kiss.

"Maybe you are a little charming." Charles muttered, making Erik smile widely down at him.

* * *

Erik should've been used to the city walls at this point, having lived inside of it for so long now, but it never ceased to amaze him how it circled the earth around the city of Graymalkin, the Westchester castle safely hidden in the middle of many houses. As they rode through the road between the fields, a few farmers stopped to look at them, curious eyes over the party that arrived.

It didn't take long for a few of the kingsmen to reach them, trying to see what was happening and quickly recognizing Charles, widening their eyes as they realized they were in the presence of the Prince.

"Let us in," Erik quickly said, bringing the attention of the kingsmen to him. "we're here to deliver the Prince back to the King and he's wounded."

They didn't try to discuss, signalling for Erik's group to follow them and get to the city. Before Erik made his horse go faster to follow the kingsmen, he looked down at Charles.

"Hold on, this will probably not be pleasant for your leg."

"Was it at before?"

Erik made his horse run as they entered the city, the rest of the group behind them as the kingsmen cleared the path as they started going through the busy streets of Graymalkin. It wasn't long until they were at the gates of the castle, the kingsmen screaming at the guards to open the gates, to let the Crown Prince in. When they finally stopped, a few of the guards seemed to be alert, staring at the group with their hands on their swords. As they saw the Prince, a bit of suspicion left their faces.

Erik was the first one to get down his horse, helping Charles down and putting one of his arms around his shoulder to help him support his weight so he wouldn't force his leg.

"Mother will be hysterical when she sees my leg and my overall state." Charles complained as they started to walk inside the castle. "Dirt on my clothes, unacceptable!"

"Better to have dirt on your clothes than to be dead, don't you think?"

"I would believe so, but who says she won't kill me after." there was a grin on Charles' lips then as he looked at Erik, making the knight smile back.

With Logan's help, they dragged Charles inside the castle as far as they could until they were stopped by someone calling for him. Down the corridor, a blonde girl looked at Charles with widened eyes, the way her body was tense and the expression on her face showing just how worried she was, and Erik quickly recognized her. Princess Raven of Westchester, Charles' sister.

"Oh my Lord, Charles!"

She ran towards her brother, Charles leaving Erik's and Logan's grip as he embraced his sister tightly, grunting slightly with pain as he tried to balance himself on one leg. Behind the Princess, a few servants came in a hurry to aid Charles. As they started to carry him away, Erik tried to follow, only to have one of the guards stop him.

"The King will be with you all shortly after the Prince is taken care of. Come with me."

Erik gave Charles a last glance as he disappeared at the end of the hallway with the servants before following the guard, bringing the rest of the group with him. They were led through the castle to a sitting area, left alone there — although Erik was pretty certain that there were guards outside the doors — to wait until someone came for them. It was only then that he noticed how tense everyone seemed to look.

His eyes met with Logan's for a moment, a silent question forming in Erik's face, and Logan quickly caught it. 

"Do you think Charles' plan will work?" everyone's eyes seemed to fall on Erik then.

"I do. You'll all be alright."

"May your words be true,  _ mon amie." _ Remy said, voice more somber than normally as he held his wife's hand.

* * *

When they finally were called to the throne room, Erik felt his body relax as he saw Charles there, clean and in proper clothes for a Prince. There was a crutch under his arm, helping him to stand up even with his bad leg, and his eyes seemed tired now that he was home and was probably tended properly, but at the same time, they seemed agitated.

In the thrones, the King and Queen sat and looked over the group with stern expressions, the Princess mirroring them even if her expression was softer. Erik got on his knee then, bowing his head and seeing the others do the same. When the King told them to get up, Erik did, eyes focusing on King Brian Xavier as he waited for his words.

"I see you did what I asked, Sir Erik." he started, a genuinely thankful expression on his face. "Brought my son back to me, and alive."

"I couldn't have done it without the help of my squire and the group who's with me here, Sire." Erik said sincerely, seeing a small smile appear on Charles' lips. 

"Sharing your victory, are you?"

"Only because said victory would be a failed mission without them."

"And they shall be rewarded for that." the King's eyes moved to the rest of the group before he got up from his throne, walking closer to them. "Charles told me the tale of your travel and how they helped him, as well as you did, Sir Erik."

"I'm here to serve, Sire." Erik bowed his head again before looking up at the King, seeing a smile much like Charles' on his lips.

"There'll be a celebration for the return of my son to us tomorrow." he then said, looking at everyone in the group for a moment. "Your bravery will be made public, as well as my gratitude."

* * *

Erik smiled as he saw everyone happy as they celebrated, the smile on everyone's faces making Erik take a deep breath, relieved. Charles' plan  _ had _ worked, and soon Remy, Rogue, Ororo and Logan wouldn't need to steal again. The next day, Logan would depart to bring Laura to the walls of Graymalkin, where they would be safe and the girl could grow in a better place. He gave the group a last look before walking away, leaving the celebration to walk through a more secluded area of the castle. If he remembered well, he was going to the right direction. 

After a few moments walking, Erik found himself at the castle's library, eyes looking at the books around him with interest until he found what he was looking for. Charles was sitting down at a chair in the back of the room, eyes staring at a great window that showed the city underneath, a lantern burning near him and making shadows cross his face. Erik only watched for a moment, admiring the other man before making his presence known.

"I heard you'd like to see me, my Prince?" 

Charles' head snapped at him quickly, a smile crossing his lips once he saw Erik there, making Erik smile back and walk closer to the Prince. One of his hands rested on the crutch while the other rested on his lap. As he looked up at Erik, his eyes seemed to shine.

"Thank you, Erik." he said, voice calm and sincere. "You kept your word."

"Again, your highness, your lack of faith in me almost offends me." Charles snorted, looking away. Erik's smile softened. "But you're welcome."

"I wonder what now..." Charles said then, after a few moments of silence, his eyes avoiding Erik. "We're not on the road anymore. I'm back here, with my responsibilities with the throne. Is it bad to wish we were still in the woods where I could lay with you and have your lips on mine?"

"If it is then I'm guilty of that too." Charles' eyes looked back at him then, the blue in them holding a spark of insecurity that made Erik want to hold the Prince against him. 

"If I asked you to be my knight, would you?"

"In a heartbeat." Charles smiled at that, an amused huff leaving his nose with Erik's words.

"Then I guess I'll have one more request to ask of my father. He won't like that I'll take you for myself but, well…"

"There are other knights out there for him. Hopefully there'll only be me for you?"

"You're getting daring, Sir Erik Lehnsherr." Charles narrowed his eyes, Erik's smile widening at him. "But, I guess so..."

Erik watched Charles then, studying his face for a moment as the Prince looked back at him, doing the same. He didn't look like the drunk man he had seen in that tavern, nor the Prince he had seen on the day he became a knight. That was Charles there, looking back at him. Tired and worried Charles, with eyes as blue as the morning sky. And wasn't that a sight...

"My Prince?" Erik said then, making Charles tilt his head for a moment.

"Yes?"

"May I kiss you?"

Charles stopped, eyes widening at the question. The light coming from the lantern was enough to show the pink that rose to Charles' cheeks at those words. It took a moment until Charles replied.

"You better."

As Erik leaned down to catch Charles' lips with his, their worries faded away, and suddenly Erik realized just how much he had won with that mission when he pulled back to look at Charles' eyes again. He could get used to them; he wondered if he already wasn't.

"And to think," Charles started saying, voice quiet in the silent room, amused smile on his lips. "that I almost made you leave when we met at that tavern."

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kuddos are more than appreciated and keeps an author's soul alive. Even a "❤️" or "+kuddos" are valid and will make me happy. ❤️
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](http://hellfre.tumblr.com) and [twitter](http://twitter.com/hllfire)!


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